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Our experience of the Olympic and Paralympic Games 2012

Date: September 2012 | Category: Sports

During the summer holidays many of the children at Norfolk House were lucky enough to experience of the excitement of attending events at the Olympic and Paralympic Games, which were held in their home city of London.

Kieran and Euan in Form 5 watched the wheelchair basketball at the Paralympic Games in September and they also travelled to the ExCel arena earlier in the summer. “We saw fencing and there were lots of rounds. The matches were really quick and we were impressed by how quickly they moved their swords.” Scarlett also travelled further out of town to one of the London arenas where her family saw “the gymnastics all round final and it was amazing. An American came first and a Russian came second but we only finished thirteenth. I do hope the Olympics will come to London again!”

Huey had the opportunity to watch one of the most gripping events in the stadium and he reported “At the two hundred metres the thing that inspired me was how fast Bolt could run in that amount of time! There was an electric atmosphere when he crossed the line and there were thousands of camera flashes at that moment. At the end he kissed the finish line as well!” Matthew also watched a gold winning performance, “When I was watching Chris Hoy’s race I felt so proud! I was sitting right above the finish line so when he zoomed past everyone roared their applause and so did I.”

Form 5 recorded their experiences to share with the rest of the school to show how they made the most of having an Olympic Games in their own country, truly a once in a lifetime experience.

Pre-Prep’s Trip to The Museum of Childhood

Date: October 2012 | Category: History

In October, Pre-Prep stepped back in time when they visited The Museum of Childhood and had the opportunity to investigate and play with some toys from over 100 years ago. The children thoroughly enjoyed their visit, consolidating their prior learning on the history of toys. They were able to compare toys from past and present and enjoyed finding out that the teachers played with some of the ‘old’ toys. There was lots of opportunity for serious discussion and engaging in role play.

Form 2’s Trip to the Verulamium Museum

Date: November 2012 | Category: History

Form 2 visited the Verulamium Museum to enrich their learning about the Romans. The museum is on the site of one of the major cities in Roman Britain, and gives an insight into everyday life in Roman Britain.

Daisy’s account of the day:

“First, when we got there, a lady showed us where to hang our coats, blazers and lunches. After that we started off looking at real Roman mosaics. They looked really colourful and had lots of patterns on them. Next , we saw some statues of Roman people. One statue was cutting wood and one statue was chopping food.

When we finished that, we saw some Roman spoons. I learnt that Romans didn’t have any forks. They only had knives and spoons. They also used their hands to eat!

After that we saw some Roman skeletons. We thought about whether they had been rich or poor Romans and looked for clues to help us work it out. Do you know how to tell if a Roman was rich or poor?

Later on we had a special surprise! We got to touch real romans artefactss. The Roman teacher was called Nicki and she helped us to think about what the Roman things were used for.

Nicki chose some volunteers and these people got to dress up as rich Romans and Celts. We thought about what life was like in Roman times.

It was a great day!”

By Daisy Dawes

Form 2 Character descriptions of the Gruffalo

Date: November 2012 | Category: English

In Form 2, we have been studying a number of books by the author Julia Donaldson. When we worked on The Gruffalo, we carefully considered the main characters and wrote character descriptions of them. Our lerning objectives were to include ambitious vocabulary, similes and use connectives to extend our sentences.

"He has a dark black tongue. He has bright teeth and they scare people away. He has a fat belly which scares people away. He is as greedy as a pig because he eats delicious chunks of meat."By Felix (2M)

"He has horrendous purple prickles and a repulsive black tongue (that will probably make you faint.) He has fearsome piercing orange eyes. He has ferocious gleaming white teeth. He has a gruesome emerald wart (which is poisonous) on the end of his nose. He is as sly as a fox."By Charlotte (2M)

Children in Need Pyjama Day

Date: November 2012 | Category: Pastoral Projects

Our Pyjama Day for Children in Need raised £340.70!

Thank you to everyone who took part.

Form 5 & 6’s Creative Curriculum Event

Date: December 2012 | Category: Sports

Forms 5 and 6 took part in our Creative Curriculum demonstrating their developing skills and talents in yoga, music performance and street dance.

Form 5 presented a wonderful display of yoga postures linked to their English work on War Horse, followed by a musical interlude by some of our talented instrumentalists and vocalists – we were treated to classical, jazz and traditional pieces.

“It was an amazing experience, there was piano, singing, yoga and street dance. It was a major success! Parents came to watch the show and they really enjoyed it because there were many talented children!" Tate Lau

“The creative curriculum event was an event where parents came to see Form 3’s yoga , Form 4’s street dance and Forms 3 and 4’s musical talents. It was very exciting and we found performing in it very fun and amusing. All the parents really enjoyed watching our performances and they all clapped at the start and end of our performances. It was very successful and everyone who took part tried their best!” Jacob Holland

Celebrating Books and Reading: Book Sharing, Author Visits and Workshops

Date: December 2012 | Category: English

In the Autumn Term, the children took part in a series of events to celebrate books and reading.

Gemma Malley, author of popular books such as ‘The Declaration’ and ‘The Resistance’, visited KS2 to talk about her own writing, and also provided invaluable tips to the children on how they could enhance their own story writing. Some of the children were so inspired that they started writing their own novels at home!

Nell Pheonix also ran story telling workshops for the children in KS1, which were highly engaging and thoroughly enjoyed by all.

We also held a book sharing morning. All of the children in KS1 brought in a favourite book to share with a KS2 buddy. This was a great opportunity for our older children to provide reading models for their younger peers.

Form 4 Create Their Own Play Scripts

Date: January 2013 | Category: English

Form 4 worked on planning and drafting their very own play scripts and used Roald Dahl’s ‘The Twits’ as inspiration. They also acted out and filmed their plays.

Mrs Twit: (Stamping on the floor and folding arms.) I’m sick and tired of you playing nasty tricks on me.

Mr Twit: (Pointing at Mrs Twit.) Well I’M fed up of YOU playing nasty tricks on me!

(Exit stage the same way as entered.)

Form 3 myths and legends

Date: January 2013 | Category: English

Form 3 studied Myths and Legends. Using a wide range of myths, including Dreamtime stories from Australia and Greek legends such as Perseus and Medusa, the children identified some common features such as heroes, villains, quests and mythical creatures. The children created many exciting pieces of writing and have even re-enacted scenes from the well-known myth, ‘Theseus and the Minotaur’, which was great fun!

Haileybury Science Challenge

Date: February 2013 | Category: Science

Form 5 children were invited to participate in the Haileybury Science Challenge. They were victorious – coming 1st in the physics challenge and 1st overall out of 14 schools!

Spaghetti Tower Challenge

Date: March 2013 | Category: Science

National Engineering Week: Children were challenged to become engineers, using spaghetti and marshmallows to create the tallest, freestanding tower they could.

Forms 5 and 6 had the extra challenge of using jelly babies – would they be a help or a hindrance?

Annual Cross Country 2013

Date: March 2013 | Category: Sports

At the beginning of March we hosted our annual cross country event at Queenswood School.

Eleven schools took part, with approximately 200 runners in total. The children performed exceptionally well considering the wet, cold and muddy conditions.

Our runners were fantastic and shone in true Norfolk House School style with particular stand out performances by Huey, who placed 10th and Byron, placed 15th in U/11 boys race as well as Sadie who finished 6th in the U/11 girls race. Fantastic results for our school in a tough competition.

Final results from the day had the U/9 girls in 5th place, U/9 boys in 8th place, U/11 girls in 4th place and the U/11 boys also in 4th place overall.

Geography Focus Week

Date: March 2013 | Category: Geography

Using the theme of “The Environment”, staff and pupils threw themselves whole-heartedly into exciting and imaginative activities throughout Geography Focus Week. These ranged from bark rubbing in nearby Highgate Wood, to junk modelling, a food miles challenge for Forms 3 and 4 and creating a “carbon footprint” using clay. As well as being highly creative, the work produced was cross-curricular, hands-on and embraced Norfolk House School’s drive towards a more personalised approach to learning.

The Focus Week was followed by an Evening Event where parents and carers were able to view their children’s work and engage in some of the activities themselves. These included making cress sandwiches using cress grown by the Reception children, junk modelling and completing a recycling quiz. For many, the highlight was the fast and furious Form 6 debate on the controversial third runway at Heathrow Airport, where emotions ran high and opinions were heartfelt!

In addition to the event being interesting and informative, parents were also able to socialise, thanks to the refreshments kindly supplied by Friends of Norfolk House. Both the Focus Week and the Evening Event proved highly popular and successful, with feedback suggesting that the interactive elements were particularly welcome.

‘How Maths is Taught in Form 5’ Parents’ Evening

Date: March 2013 | Category: Maths

Parents are encouraged to participate in their children’s maths either through working with their child during a homework activity or playing maths games at home. During the school year there are several Maths Evenings for parents to attend and these have proved successful. Parents are aware and develop an understanding of the range of methods and strategies their child is taught in school and how they can assist their child at home.

In March, a Maths Evening was held for parents of Form 5 pupils, to give them an insight into the teaching methods used in class.

Bellevue Music Festival

Date: March 2013 | Category: Music

In March, Norfolk House pupils from Years 3-6 joined children from five other schools from across the UK, to perform at the University of Reading, as part of Bellevue Education’s inaugural Music Festival.

The two hour concert, organised by music teachers from the schools which are all part of Bellevue Education Group, saw pupils showcasing their talent to an audience of parents and families.

The audience were entertained by the Norfolk House School Choir, performing “I don’t want to live on the moon”, followed by a cello solo as well as two vocal solos by Year 6 pupils.

Form 5 Learn About Robotics at Gladesmore IT Academy

Date: May 2013 | Category: ICT

Form 5 visited Gladesmore IT Academy to learn about building and operating robots.

Read Annabel and Jasmine’s recount of the day:

On the 13th of May Form 5 visited Gladesmore IT Academy. While they were there they explored the world of robotics.

Accompanied on their journey by Mr Moses, Year 5 were fortunate enough to work with pre-built lego robots and learned to use a software allowing them to control the robots. At first Year 5 were a bit unsure; however, by the end of the day it was as if they were experts!

Katie quoted ‘it was an amazing experience and I learnt loads of new skills!’

During the day the children completed various challenges which included directing the robot along a set course.

Form 3’s Ancient Egyptian Day

Date: May 2013 | Category: History

Form 3 held an Egyptian Day in May, where everyone dressed up in Egyptian costumes…even the teachers!

They spent the day creating exciting things such as 3D pyramids, Egyptian style jewellery, cartouches and pop-up mummies.

In the afternoon, the children enjoyed an Egyptian feast, which consisted of typical Egyptian foods like: dates, olives, bread, falafel and grapes.

Many of the pupils were trying some foods for the first time and found that they actually liked them.

We had a fun-filled Egyptian Day.

Rounders & Cricket Parents’ Picnic

Date: June 2013 | Category: Sports

On Wednesday 19th June, KS2 students and parents participated in our annual Rounders/Cricket picnic. This being my first, I was delighted that the weather held and we were able to enjoy a stunning afternoon of fun and games. Competition was fierce with many children and parents showing their skills. A delightful picnic was enjoyed under the trees before running, hitting and cheering were seen and heard across the fields at Durnsford Park. I noted an array of standout performances on the Rounders pitch from students and parents alike with Mrs Rigby dubbed the ‘secret weapon’ as she scored her first rounder and caught two players out. I would like to thank all staff for their help on the day and a big thanks to parents and students for participating. I was thrilled to see the enthusiasm and excitement among players and teams. I am very much looking forward to next year and am sure it will be just as successful!

Miss Williamson (Head of Sport)

Take One Picture

Date: July 2013 | Category: Art & DT

The children this year took part in the National Gallery ‘Take One Picture’ initiative. This involved us all exploring one painting “Still Life with Drinking Horn” by Willem Kalf. We used the objects within this painting to inspire our own creative thinking. We were very proud when the work produced by Form 6 was chosen to be on display in The National Gallery. This work was based on patterns that we found on the carpet within the image. The children explored a mathematical element and created work using symmetry and rotation.

Sports Day 2013

Date: July 2013 | Category: Sports

On Friday 5th of July we had our annual school sports day at Queenswood School and what an amazing day it was.

With a mix of excitement and nerves, children lined up on the start line in a variety of events, in search of victory. Sprinting, hopping and balancing skills were tested as the children competed for house points - who would be the winning house this year?

It was not only the children who were impressive with their abilities; the parents were just as competitive and victorious in their efforts.

The highlight of the day was the tug of war competition. Parents on one side and year 6’s and teachers in a joint effort on the other, pulling with all their might and….. the rope snaps! Who would have thought we were all so strong?!

Overall boy athlete of the day was awarded to Huey Mohan and girl athlete of the day went to Poppy Dawes. And of course the winning house was Clive, by quite a large margin. The most impressive space hopper award in my books definitely went to Pippa Black who finished, quite literally, miles ahead of the pack!

We all enjoyed having Mr Ashton on the microphone with his motivating and inspiring commentary.

Thanks so much to all the staff for their help on the day and to the parents for coming along to support your children on such a great day. We are looking forward to next year!

Miss Williamson (Head of Sport)

Music Exams 2012-13

Date: July 2013 | Category: Music

Congratulations to all our pupils who have attended music exams in 2012/13:

Molly Hedges and Ishmael Levy also sat on the Council as part of their responsibility in their roles as Head Girl and Head Boy.

The School Council were supported by Ms. Burke and Mrs. Rajiah.

Norfolk House Goes Green!

Date: October 2013 | Category: Eco

The leaves are turning and Norfolk House is turning over a new leaf with the help from Eco-club!

The club have just started meeting at 3.20pm on a Wednesday, but have already come up with loads of fantastic ideas to help make our school a more energy efficient, sustainable and pleasant place to be.

The club have written a mission statement to explain their plans for this term:

Eco-Club Mission Statement Autumn 2013

We want to stop wasting electricity in Norfolk House School.
We want to stop wasting food.
We want to have more recycling bins around the school and in the playground.
We want to have Eco Monitors who will help children be green.
We want a compost bin for all the unwanted food.
We want to grow more things in our playground like vegetables.

This half term, the team have decided to focus on rubbish in our playground by raising awareness of how to keep our playground free of litter and by organising new recycling bins. They have also decided on a club logo and motto to help advertise their ideas and will be speaking in assemblies soon to spread their green message!

Miss Milligan

Norfolk House Harvest Festival

Date: October 2013 | Category: Pastoral Projects

On Tuesday 8 October, the children, staff and parents of the school gathered to celebrate the Harvest. The children were excited at what lay ahead. The theme was ‘Harvests around the World.’ It began with Form 2 presenting how harvest is celebrated in America with Thanksgiving. This was colourful with the USA flag displayed. Pre-Prep informed everyone about where in Great Britain foods are grown and harvested. This was very informative. The sweet song of the choir performing ‘Harvest Song’ told us all of the effort that is put into the Harvest. Following on from the choir were Form 3 who told us about how harvest is celebrated in India. The children performed a role play showing the Onam festival.

Form 4 performed a Chinese Harvest. They had made some lovely lanterns and told us of the fruits produced in China. Form 5 enjoyed showing us how harvest is celebrated in Ghana which is part of Africa. The class had produced some colourful Ghanaian weavings. It was now the turn of Father Pybus who told how all of the harvest items on display in the church required water. Form 6 then performed a Middle Eastern Harvest which covered four countries in the Middle East and how they each celebrated differently but are all one in their need of a harvest. Finally Key Stage 2 children sang the ‘Harvest Samba’ and ‘Jesus and the Sandwiches’ which told us of the importance of each other and all the foods collected. The event was concluded by Miss Ellison thanking everyone for all their efforts and wishing everyone a happy harvest. The whole event was full of useful information about the populations of each country and their different foods. What a fabulous harvest.

By Annabel and Matthew

Writers’ Corner: Pre-Prep Learn About Story Writing

Date: November 2013 | Category: English

Pre-Prep have been discussing story language, including ways to begin and end a story. They have also looked at characters and setting and the descriptive vocabulary which can be used to describe these.

The children were given a picture of a dragon with a castle in the background as stimulus and asked to create their own fantasy story.

You can read a couple of examples, below:

Once upon a time there was a spooky castle and there was a dragon. It was a stormy night and he was cold. He could breathe fire and he blew the whole castle down. He blew the whole kingdom down with all his strength and his fire melted everything. Then the knights came and they tied up the dragon. He said he was very sorry and they all lived together happily ever after.

By Naiyan

Once upon a time there was a castle. Inside the castle lived a prince, a princess, a knight, a king and a queen. Outside the castle there live a dragon and every day he roared a lot. Sometimes he blew a lot of fire. All the people were scared of the dragon but he wanted to look after the king and queen and the castle.

By Imaani

Form 4 Learn About Victorian Christmas at the Royal Gunpowder Mills

Date: December 2013 | Category: History

On Monday 2 December, Form 4 arrived at school dressed as Victorian children, ready for our trip to The Royal Gunpowder Mills to learn all about how the Victorians celebrated Christmas.

The children started in a session where they learnt about about Victorian Christmas decorations and discovered that Prince Albert introduced the Christmas tree to the UK when he married Queen Victoria. We were surprised to find out that the Victorians decorated their trees with strings of popcorn, candy canes, tinsel made from real silver and actual candles!

The children also enjoyed exploring a range of Victorian toys and thought carefully about the differences between the types of toys rich and poor children played with. We all had great fun joining in with some silly Parlour games and found It very surprising that the Victorians had a good sense of humour!

In other workshops, the children learnt about a traditional Victorian Christmas meal and the origins of the first Christmas card. During the day, the children took part in some creative activities, making handmade gift bags and screen printed Christmas cards.

We all has a great day out and are now feeling particularly festive!

Cross Country is Up and Running!

Date: January 2014 | Category: Sports

Miss Williamson and Mr. Ashton are joined each Wednesday and Friday morning, by a group of children who are dedicated and committed to improving their running ability, whilst having fun too.

The competitive team train at Ally Pally on a Wednesday morning. This is a serious session where students are challenged with hills and unpredictable terrain.

Friday’s club has a more relaxed feel to it, with students working at their own pace to complete various set courses.

I am so proud of all the students involved. They regularly brave the morning cold with a smiling face and a positive attitude. We are training for the Interhouse and Interschool events later this term and are very much looking forward to competing. Keep it up team!

Miss Williamson

Watch a video from one of their Wednesday training sessions, below:

Writers’ Corner: Form 5’s Seriously Sensational Sentence Structure

Date: January 2014 | Category: English

Seriously sensational sentence structure has been the key topic of discussion in Form 5 this term. While focussing on story writing, pupils are taking a closer look at how to structure sentences in order to improve the quality of our work.

Watch the video below to see how to change a series of simple sentences into compound or complex sentences:We are aiming to use a range of simple, compound and complex sentences to add interest to our writing and engage our readers.

Here are some sample sentences from our writing:

A deafening growl crackled up the corridor making the children, who were terrified, pick up immense speed. They ran, like a herd of buffalos on a rampage, to the end of the hall.
– Kaya formed a complex sentences using embedded clauses.

Like elephants charging down the echoing corridor, the children, who weren’t wasting a single second, barged through every door in their way.
– Tate formed a complex sentences using an embedded clause

As Ellen stood by the door, she saw the horrific storm approaching.
- Eloise used a complex sentence with a subordinate clause at the start of the sentence

Terrified, Ellen stood by the door and she saw the storm approaching.
- Maria S formed a complex sentence using an adverb at the start of the sentence.

Along with this huge focus on sentence structure, we are looking at the structure of stories too, thinking particularly about developing the plot of a fictional narrative. We have looked at how to write the beginning of a story.

Watch a video, below, of a pupil reading the beginning of her story. She uses an interesting opener and ambitious vocabulary to hook her readers, as well as setting the mood for the story.

Can you guess what kind of story it is?

Form 5 Demonstrate 11+ Maths Methods & Strategies to Parents

Date: January 2014 | Category: Maths

On the evening of Thursday 23 January, the Form 5 parents attended a maths evening at Norfolk House, which provided them with an insight into the mathematical methods and strategies used by the children as they journey from Form 5 into Form 6 and commence the Senior School process.

The evening launched with a confident presentation from the Form 5 children about maths, their opinions on the subject and their desire to do well in the subject. The pupils demonstrated a variety of mathematical methods and strategies to their parents.

Parents were interested to find out from the children how the methods and requirements were different in maths today than from when they were at school, and the the topics which pupils demonstrated were:

Long Multiplication

Long Division

Fractions, Decimals and Percentages

Ratio and Proportion

Algebra

CAT (Constructing a Triangle)

Halfway through the evening, the parents took part in some mental maths games and informal mathematical chat, which was very enlightening.

It was an enjoyable evening, with smiles all round, and parents left the evening reassured that the 11+ process involving maths would be fine.

Rob Ashton (Head of Maths)

Watch a video of the Form 5 pupils demonstrating a variety of mathematical methods and strategies at at their Parents Maths Evening:

Pupil Recount: Form 6 at the RAF Museum

Date: March 2014 | Category: History

On a sunny Thursday morning, Form 6 set out to RAF museum. We saw huge planes, real uniforms used by real members of the RAF museum and we were filled full of factual knowledge. We started our trip arriving at a WWII home scene.

Form 6 learned loads about rationing, war precautions and air raid warnings. We were even visited by our very own air raid warden! Everyone could see the huge effects war had on everyone, not just those fighting. All of us got the chance to try on a gas mask, make our very own gas mask holders and check out wartime shops and home scenes. We even found out that people in the shops had to read your list and get your food for you! As well as all of this we got to see some actual rationing tokens.

Next we went on to learn about the battle of Britain fought purely in the skies. Thanks to some very brave RAF members the battle was won. We saw every part of each unit was key in success from radar to mechanics. I have to say I was delighted to try on an actual serving woman’s uniform. It was amazingly small for a full grown woman and fit me comfortably. Everybody was given the chance to learn about radar, a key invention to win the war, and we saw colour footage of the scenes in the skies. Next, we were allowed some free time to explore the numerous exhibitions such as a speaking model of Winston Churchill and see a ‘flying’ boat. Our heads were supplied with even more information by a film on the magnificent battle with real planes that fought in it.

As you can be sure, the museum was packed with planes from the Luftwaffe, RAF and many other places as well. It was truly amazing how much detail had gone into each piece of machinery and every device. From one of the first ejecting chairs to famous planes, we saw it. All in all it was a fantastic day for everyone and we all left happy and fascinated as we hopped on our bus home.

By Annabel

See photos from Form 6’s visit to the RAF Museum:

VIDEO: Form 4 Learn Street Dancing

Date: March 2014 | Category: Performing Arts

Pupils from Norfolk House go off site each week for sport sessions, where they participate in a range of activities aimed at developing sporting ability and building team spirit.

Watch the video below to see the Form 4 learning street dance:

Impressive Performances from the Easter Concert

Date: May 2014 | Category: Performing Arts

Norfolk House put on an impressive Easter Concert, where pupils displayed great technique, confidence and talent through a range of disciplines. The audience was entertained by our school choir, our guitar ensemble and our soloists. Thanks to all the parents and family members who attend the music events and support Norfolk House’s musicians.

Watch videos from some of the performances, below:

Form of the Week: Form 4’s PGL Residential

Date: June 2014 | Category: Sports

Form 4 had a fabulous trip to PGL. They took part in some excellent outdoor pursuit activities and really challenged themselves. The children worked well as a team and had a wonderful time. They ate lots of lovely food and enjoyed sleeping (or not!) in the shared bedrooms. One of the highlights was definitely buying sweets in the shop. A great time was had by all.

Watch a video of some of Year 4’s adventures at PGL, below:

Our Fantastic Sports Day!

Date: June 2014 | Category: Sports

Our annual sports day was held on Friday 13 June at Queenswood School. A fantastic day of fun was had by all and the weather could not have been better.

The children performed brilliantly in all races and enjoyed the day of competition. They competed in a range of activities, such as throwing, jumping, sprinting and relays and there were also fun races which included space hopper, sack racing and the ever popular egg and spoon race for KS1 students.

Special congratulations to the mums and dads who got involved in our fun races as well and the more competitive 100m sprints. We are very proud of you all.

The overall winner of the day was Clive, with Wellington finishing second and Nelson in third place.

See photos from Sports Day:

VIDEO: What Makes Norfolk House So Special?

Date: June 2014 | Category: ICT

Pupils in Form 6 have been taking part in a project using an app called Aurasma, which provides a way of bringing images to life as video.

The pupils each provided their own content for the videos. Matthew chose to film a video with some of our staff about what makes Norfolk House so special.

You can watch his video below:

Forms 5 & 6’s Residential Visit to France

Date: June 2014 | Category: French

Forms 5 & 6’s four-day residential trip to France on 3 June was very successful. The children were able to get a good feel of French culture through the wonderful mixture of language, cultural, educational and fun activities. The food at the Kyriad hotel was excellent and the children enjoyed their picnics and dinners. Everyone had a fantastic time and came back full of excitement of the week’s activities.

During their stay in France, pupils had the opportunity to visit a French primary school and practise their French language skills with children of their own age. At the bee and honey farm our pupils had the chance to discover many aspects of the life of a bee. They made their own wax candles, which they could take home along with a pot of honey. The visit to a typical French supermarket was a fantastic way to practise their French, but also to see the variety of food available. At the World War II Museum at Ambleteuse, pupils saw many interesting displays and artefacts from World War II. What made it more special was the fact that it was the 70 year anniversary of the D-Day landings whilst we were there.

We had great fun at the sweet shop and at the beach. Pupils followed instructions in French to make bread and learned about traditional wheat plaiting. The visit to the Etaples Military Cemetery was very informative and particularly important marking the centenary of the Great War.

We were especially pleased with how well the pupils behaved. I would like to say thank you to Miss Habgood for her help and support prior and during the trip. Many thanks also to Miss Williamson for dealing with the medication and to Mr Ashton for keeping the children busy with games during the evening!

Mrs M. Agathangelou

See photos from Forms 5 & 6’s French residential:

Pupil Report: Form 2 at the Ecology Centre

Date: July 2014 | Category: Science

Form 2 enjoyed learning about animals and their habitats during their recent trip to the Ecology Centre. Read Joseph, Max and Georgina’s report from the day:

On Thursday 26th June we went to the Ecology Centre in Holland Park. After the long journey in lots of traffic we arrived at a beautiful park and play area where we had our picnic. Then we went into the Ecology Centre, where we met Matthew, which was very interesting. Matthew explained that ecology is the study of animals in their habitats. He showed us some amazing stuffed animals and insects including a fox, mammals, birds and invertebrates, which was incredible.

We then set off to two different habitats. 2H to a Pond and 2M to a woodland. The pond dipping was great fun although we had to be careful not to fall in! We scooped out some diving beetles, water boatman, leeches, mayflies, pond skaters, mosquito lava, sea snail and dragon fly nymphs and were able to identify them by looking at them carefully through a magnifying glass and referring to a guide.

At the woodland habitat, we used magnifying glasses again to look for different creatures. We popped them into a special container so that we could look carefully at them. We found a very fat worm, a baby slug, a centipede, a woodlouse, a millipede and lots of ants and spiders. We discovered that the best place to look was in damp and dark places.

We really enjoyed our visit to the Ecology Centre. The highlight was seeing a peacock on the roof!

By Joseph, Max and Georgina (2H)

KS2’s Spectacular Performance of The Wizard of Oz

Date: July 2014 | Category: Performing Arts

KS2 children performed The Wizard of Oz on Wednesday 2 July. They pulled off a spectacular show with the Form 6 children taking the lead roles. There were a huge number of lines to remember and the children did a wonderful job.

We saw some superb dancing and singing from all of the children. Form 4 made excellent - if not a little scary – flying monkeys. Form 5 were the guardians of the Emerald City and the Form 3 children were the munchkins. Everyone pulled together and performed at their best for the parents.

The face painting (thank you parents) made a huge difference to the overall effect and looked amazing. The costumes, props and backdrops were wonderful.

Form 6 surpassed themselves with some outstanding performances and soloists – a huge well done to all.

See photos from KS2’s performance:

Exciting New Music Curriculum

Date: September 2014 | Category: Music

The new school year sees the start of a brand new music curriculum for Norfolk House. I spent some time over the summer building a new program of music study for the whole school; looking at the topics that will be covered in each year group and tying in music learning with learning that will be going on in other subjects. This will allow music to extend the children’s understanding of other topics as well as providing opportunity for a far broader and more in depth exploration of music.

I feel that it is really important for children to be making music in their lessons, so the new curriculum provides lots of opportunities for composition, arrangement, playing instruments and singing - all of which the children will take time to critically evaluate in order to develop their performances and appreciation. Each half term provides a single musical project for the children which will culminate in a recorded performance. Every lesson will include some general musical skills work, for example rhythm games, and singing as well as the focused project work. I am also exploring ideas of working with professional musicians, other schools, orchestral workshops etc. to make the children’s musical experiences as rich as possible.

Linking the music learning to the children’s other topics has allowed for a really varied and exciting program. Here is a little taster of what you might be hearing throughout the year: Sound collages and graphic notation inspired by Matisse’s collaged Artworks; songwriting and ‘Musical voice’ through investigation of Tim Minchin’s ‘Matilda’, extending learning about Roald Dahl in literacy; composition of soundscapes for a land of dinosaurs to develop early understanding of dynamics and tempo; composition and arrangement of Raga (melody) and Kirtan (call and response) to accompany dance / movement inspired by Hindu music; an exploration of emotion through music associated with war, for example trench songs and notions of morale to the poignancy of Verdan Smailović’s cello playing in the rubble of the siege of Sarajevo.

At the time of writing, the children have had only one music lesson this year, but already I have been completely thrilled by their responses. Reception have played some funny games exploring rhythm and movement and were very impressive following the conductor whilst performing as a crazy choir. Pre Prep - as they started exploring the history of the seaside through the sounds of Wurlitzers, ice cream vans and brass bands - really made me smile when responding to a crackly old vinyl recording of ‘Oh I Do Like To Be Beside The Seaside’. They suggested that the crackling sound was because “the man who is singing was frying a fish.” Form 2 have started to explore Roman music and have already experimented with instruments to select a range that they feel able to replicate a ‘Roman sound’ with as they start thinking about creating their own Roman composition. Form 3 have been identifying types of weather and how dynamics, texture and tempo are used to create weather like effects in classical music, with wonderful sensitivity and insight. Form 4 have been impressively perceptive when listening to film scores to accompany imaginary settings and were able to articulate wonderful descriptions of the landscapes and atmospheres the music conjured. Form 5 have started to explore and evaluate versions of two songs (‘Oh, When the Saints Go marching In’ and ‘Swing Low Sweet Chariot’) in preparation for producing their own arrangement of the songs for a dynamic ‘Sing Off’. They expressed really sophisticated responses to the tracks we played and surprised me in almost unanimously deciding that meaning in ‘Swing Low’ was far better expressed through the simplicity of Johnny Cash’s performance than the power of Beyonce’s richly produced version. Form 6 have investigated a range of protest songs to determine characteristics and styles that they might employ in their own arrangements and performances of ‘Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around’. The children were incredibly thoughtful and mature in their responses and a lot of strong views were expressed in the lesson.

So my start to the new academic year has been incredibly exciting and rewarding already. And there’s more - a new Norfolk House School Choir starts rehearsing on 16th September and I am really looking forward to working on a range of challenging, beautiful and exciting songs with the children. There will be some simple songs to develop our listening skills and ability to sing parts and harmonies, some fun songs, some pop songs, some world songs, some traditional songs and some games - for warm up and for developing specific skills. So listen to this space - hopefully you will be hearing some wonderful musical performances very soon!

Mrs. Crawford

Form 4 Netball v Gatehouse

Date: October 2014 | Category: Sports

On Wednesday, 24th September 2014, Form 4 girls traveled to Gatehouse School near Victoria Park with Miss Clark and Mrs Osborne to play netball. Unfortunately, three Form 4 girls were unable to attend, but luckily two Form 5 girls, Beth and Olivia kindly stepped in to fill the team. It was a beautiful day for a netball match and the girls were in high spirits. After the girls got used to their positions and recognised the opponents they were supposed to be marking, they adapted to the flow of the game with ease. Daisy was quick on her feet, always open for a pass and ready to shoot. Jessica played centre brilliantly, helping move the ball swiftly down the court. Olivia’s accuracy with her shots was astounding, matching Gatehouse point for point. The teams continued to match point for point throughout the game and it concluded in a draw, seven all. The teams celebrated with cheers for the opposing team and the girls shared biscuits and orange juice after the game. Overall, it was a successful first match! Congratulations, Form 4 girls!

Norfolk House Music Ensemble

Date: November 2014 | Category: Music

Norfolk House School have recently arranged for a new group of KS2 children to perform and show their talents. All of the children love this idea and here is what some of the children think:

Maria Sophocli (Head of music):
‘I play the saxophone in the ensemble. I agree that this is a very good idea. We are taught by a teacher called Mr Cannon who studied music at Trinity college.I believe that teamwork is very important in the ensemble since you have to sound tuneful as a whole, working together to make the piece of music flow and sound melodic. A few of the ensemble children will be playing in the Creative Curriculum. Good Luck’

Maria Redko (Head girl):
‘I play the piano in the ensemble and I think this is a very good opportunity to show off your talent and improve your teamwork. In addition to this, we build trust as we have to rely on each other to play our part and to not make mistakes because it would make the ensemble sound out of tune. Mr Cannon is a great teacher because he teaches us various musical skills and even composes or edits pieces of music to best suit us. I always look forward to the ensemble. I always look forward to the fun we have there and enjoy every moment of it!’

Charlotte Chan (Head of netball and chess):
‘I play the piano in the ensemble and I feel and appreciate that Mr Cannon tries his best and prepares us very well for events. Also he teaches us varied scales and recently we have learnt the G major pentatonic scale and then did an improvisation on it and will perform it at the Creative Curriculum event.’

For younger pupils Mr Cannon is thinking about creating a Ks1 ensemble.

Form 5 and 6 Creative Curriculum Event

Date: November 2014 | Category: Art & DT, Music, Sports

On Wednesday 26th November, Forms 5 and 6 treated trooped down to St. Andrew’s Church Hall to treat parents to a programme of creative and sporting performances. The Creative Curriculum Event is a fantastic opportunity for the children to share some of the skills they have been so impressively acquiring during their sports lessons this term, as well as a great showcase for our aspiring musicians: whether they learn their instrument in or out of school.

After a characteristically jovial welcome from Mr Ashton, the Head Boy and Girl acted as our compares and introduced the afternoon’s entertainment. Form 5 started the performances off with an immaculately delivered demonstration of some of the skills that they had learned in their Yoga lessons. Some of the children introduced the poses, explaining their health benefits, before the whole class took on the positions in carefully orchestrated synchronicity. The display was not only impressive in its timing, but also because of the children’s abilities. They were graceful and poised and many were extremely accomplished, exhibiting excellent balance, flexibility and strength; for example, the upward wheel pose introduced by Marissa and the arm balances introduced by Ben.

The musical presentation followed with performances on guitar, saxophone and piano – with Tilika impressively playing the piano and singing at the same time. We were delighted by a range of musical pieces from classical Beethoven to the Beetles on the piano, as well as some wonderful classical guitar, to the Theme from Pirates of the Caribbean on the saxophone. It can be quite daunting to play a musical instrument or to sing in front of an audience, yet all our musicians performed with great professionalism and demonstrated some wonderful musicality. They should all feel very proud of themselves, but a special mention must go to our senior girls in the music ensemble, started only this term! The girls have been exploring pentatonic scales in their ensemble work with Mr Cannon, and were keen to perform an improvisation in B flat major for the event; a daring move, which they pulled off with inspiring skill.

The event was rounded off with a definite Bang Bang! Form 6 performed their extremely well rehearsed and meticulously crafted Street Dance to the sounds of Little Mix (Salute), Jessie J, Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj (Bang Bang) and Pharrell Williams (Happy). The moves were slick, the ‘attitude’ alarmingly evident (some great acting!) and the choreography was brilliantly creative. It was obvious how much sweat and toil had gone into the production, but equally evident how much the children enjoyed their performance.

Form 5 and 6 should feel extremely proud of their performances. What wonderful fruits of their hard work. Many parents afterwards commented on how impressed they were and how much they had enjoyed the event.

The Friendship Bench

Date: January 2015 | Category: Pastoral Projects

The PPC have recently added a friendship bench to the playground. It was kindly donated by the Chu family who left the school last year. The PPC were responsible for researching and choosing the bench and were happy to announce that it has now been installed in the playground. We are delighted with the bright colours and its fun design of mushroom seats.

The friendship bench will provide an opportunity for all children to enjoy their play time. Last term the PPC held an assembly where we explained the purpose of the bench. We advised the children to visit the bench if they were felling lonely. This will signal to the children from the PPC to approach the friendship bench and cheer them up.

After only one play time we’ve already put a smile on children’s faces!

Jessica Yam PPC

Reception visit the Natural History Museum

Date: February 2015 | Category: History

Last week the Reception children were joined by some of our older Nursery pupils on an exciting trip to the Natural History Museum. For the nursery children, this was one of their very first school trips, so they were extra excited!

The children responded with enthusiasm to all aspects of the trip and many, including Phoebe, Lauren and Aidan, said they loved seeing the massive robot T-rex! Flores noted that she liked looking at the Diplodocus and measuring it with her footsteps! Dillan learnt a new fact which was that Iguanadons have great eyesight and can see in the dark, just like cats! All in all, it was a great day with lots of sleepy, but cheery faces on the journey back to school.

Reception's study of Dinosaurs this term concluded yesterday with a wonderful and exceptionally well-attended Dinosaur Museum Day, where the children had an opportunity to share their impressive dinosaur knowledge and wonderful work. They had spent several weeks creating special exhibitions for the museum including dinosaur models made of junk and construction, their very own non-fiction books (complete with Contents pages!), dinosaur land, dinosaur eggs and many mums and dads enjoyed some delicious Swamp Juice from our Herbivore Cafe!

This has been a very engaging topic and the children have learned so much. We are now looking forward to our next term's topic - Circus!

Form 4 visit to the Museum of London Docklands

Date: March 2015 | Category: History

On Thursday, Form 4 visited the Museum of London Docklands. In the morning we took in the second floor galleries which show how the docks have changed from Victorian times to the modern day. We found about how the area was affected by World War II and how investment has brought about massive regeneration with more buildings yet to come .
In the afternoon, we visited the 3rd floor galleries which contain information and artefacts on slavery and how London docklands played a part in this with their involvement with the 'Trade Triangle'. The children worked hard to find out about different aspects of the slave trade and consolidated their learning of Black History well.

By Miss Walker

World Book Day Celebrations

Date: March 2015 | Category: English

All the children and staff enjoyed a character filled day to celebrate World Book Day. Thank you to all parents for your support with costumes; it was lovely to see the children all so excited on the day! Many thanks also to FONH for generously donating vouchers for prizes; the Form teachers certainly had a very difficult task in choosing the winners!

During the day, the children took part in book related activities, including Pre-Prep and Reception working together to create soundscapes to accompany the ever popular Gruffalo. Enjoy watching the photostory below to see some of the many fabulous costumes from the day.

Parent Pupil Event

Date: March 2015 | Category: Parent Pupil Events

On Thursday 12th March, Norfolk House & Montessori House hosted a parent-pupil event to celebrate the learning the children have been doing on our theme of 'Our Caring School'. The event was very well attended and there was a buzz of excitement in the school as enthused children shared their work. A range of children's work was displayed and hands on activities were on offer covering themes of diversity, friendship, active citizenship, caring for the local environment, growth mindset, e-safety and homelessness. It was fantastic to see such a range and ambition in the outcomes of learning - including videos made by pupils, artwork, speeches and debate. Parents also had the opportunity to attend e-safety talks to find out more about how to support their children in being safe online and when using mobile phones. We will be sending out a version of the presentation used on the evening to support any parents who could not attend.

In the playground, the School Council Coin Trail exceeded the 100m challenge they set, measuring a total of 104.2m and raising £114.13 for Ambitious About Autism. Many thanks to those families and staff who brought in their coins.

Thank you to FONH for providing refreshments, where they made £108 profit and contributed a further £152, giving £260.00 towards Ambitious About Autism. Thanks too, to the families who attended and the staff for all their hard work in making the event such a success.

Enjoy watching the Photostory showing some pictures from the evening.

Red Nose Day

Date: March 2015 | Category: Pastoral Projects

On Friday 13th March 2015, Norfolk House and Montessori House joined together to celebrate Red Nose Day to raise money for Comic Relief. The children’s awareness had been raised to the plight of others during our Key Stage assemblies and they enjoyed participating in the Red Nose Day theme song. On the day it was heartening to see the support and enthusiasm from all the children and staff. To date we have raised £775.20. Thank you for your kind donations and helping your children to embrace a worthy cause.

Solar Eclipse

Date: March 2015 | Category: Science

We were all very excited last week as we waited to view a once-in-a-lifetime solar eclipse! During the week, we prepared ourselves by learning about what an eclipse is and how to view it safely. Each class made various styles of pinhole cameras and practised using them. Unfortunately, as you are aware, the weather was not on our side and we had to be content watching the live feed of the eclipse from the University of Nottingham. Nonetheless, we got a great view of the eclipse and were riveted as we watched the moon reach its totality, leaving only the sun’s corona exposed.

The children have taken their pinhole cameras home and have been instructed to keep them safe until the next total solar eclipse is visible in the UK….in 2090!

British Science Week

Date: May 2015 | Category: Science

Pre-Prep
In Pre-Prep we attempted to create a marble maze which would keep a marble going for 60 seconds. Unfortunately the longest we kept it going for was 32 seconds. We made the marble maze out of paper, card, and other household recycling and taped it to the fence in the Pre-Prep garden. During our discussion after we tested it, we decided that we'd need to make it twice as long to make it last for 60 seconds and be more careful not to have gaps.

Form 2
Form 2 had lots of fun investigating how they could make a 60 second sand timer by constructing their own cardboard tubes and testing them using stop watches. At first it was challenging and the children had to vary the width of their tubes in order to make the flow faster or slower. The most successful group achieved a timer which lasted for 72 seconds.

Form 3
In science as part of our topic on light and shadows we made our own sun dials. We used them in the playground to observe how the sun moves in 60 seconds and one hour.

Forms 4, 5 and 6
Forms 4, 5 and 6 were also challenged to produce a marble run that kept a ball rolling for 60 seconds. At first glance, the task appeared to be quite easy but once we began, the difficulty of it became more apparent! It was easy enough to make the marble roll through the various tubes and cardboard boxes but we had to think hard about how to slow it down enough that we would reach the magic 60 second mark. Form 5 thought about how gradients would affect the speed of the marble and experimented with a steep ramp at the start of the run that, unfortunately, meant the marble raced through to the finish! Form 6 tried to use ramps and flaps fashioned from cardboard and Form 4 thought about how to use various materials around the classroom to help lengthen the run. All in all, a challenging but very fun task indeed!

Perform Drama Workshop

Date: May 2015 | Category: Performing Arts

On Friday 24th April, KS1 and Reception had an exciting start to the term with a Perform drama workshop, where the children became circus masters and carried out a range of mimes and activities. The Perform leader took the children on a magical journey about a grumpy lion who did not want to perform. The children became clowns to entertain the lion and change his mind.

The children thoroughly enjoyed the workshop and were fully involved with the activities. They used their imaginations and worked well together as a group.

Following on from the excitement on the day, this week Pre-Prep have been learning about recounts in their English lessons and have written a recount about their morning with Richard the ringmaster. We thought it would be nice to share a couple of these recounts with you. Enjoy!

A Drama Circus by Millie R.

Last Friday morning Pre-Prep and Mrs Gormley and Mrs Bolton went to the Baptist Church to do some drama circus skills. When we got there, there was a man called Richard the Ringmaster. First we pretended to juggle. Then we did some tightrope walking. Next we pretended we were a rodeo rider. After that we pretended to ride a unicycle. Then we put on our big red noses and our big boots and our wigs. Then he said there was a lion called Leo that did not want to perform. He said Leo would only perform if clowns made him laugh. We were clowns so we made him laugh and laugh. Finally we went back to school after a lovely drama lesson.

Our Drama Adventure by Sasha G.

Last Friday Pre-Prep went to do drama based on circus skills. We went at 9:30 – 10:30. The church was in Dukes Avenue. In the church we acted as a clown who had a squeaky nose. Then we were a Rodeo Rider who said YeeHaa. It was fun doing the Rodeo Rider. Next we acted out a unicycle. Finally Richard the man who taught us these things said there was a lion who doesn’t want to do the show. We tried to help and we did. I had a great time! Then we went back to school.

Form 5 & 6 Bushcraft Trip

Date: June 2015 | Category: Extra-curricular

we sat under the Yurt (this is a shelter by the campfire) and we met our camp leaders: Leo, Lorrie, Rachel and our cook Sarah. We first got into groups called tribes, and within our tribes we came up with names for them. One was called The Basilisks and the other Scorpia. We made flags, shelters and a backstory of how our tribe came about. The tents we slept in were crawling with spiders, but luckily it wasn’t that bad as soon as you got used to them!

The food that we ate was absolutely marvellous and it consisted of pasta bolognese, beef fajitas, goat curry, apple crumble, American pancakes and lots of other lovely dishes. During our fantastic four days we did archery, this was not as easy as it looked! We went on beautiful nature walks where we also played a game called Predator and some people even slept in shelters outside in the freezing cold! We also roasted marshmallows and drank hot chocolate by the campfire. It was a sensational experience!

Bushcraft is inspiring, creative fun; it’s amazing for children to enjoy and experience the world outdoors.

Written by Grace Ferrari Callaghan

On Tuesday 12th May, Forms 5 and 6 set off on an adventure in the wilderness that we will never forget, AKA Bushcraft! When we arrived we were so excited and after a brief welcome by our instructors Laurie and Rachel and our awesome cook, Sarah, it was at last time for our first task.

We were split into our two tribes and were asked to create a war dance, a flag and a back story about the history of our tribe and how it was formed. In the end we came up with the tribal names of Scorpia and Basilisks.

Afterwards, we went about collecting sticks long enough to build a shelter. That’s right, you’ve got it…shelter building! Apparently the best type of tree to build a shelter under is one where you can get your arms around the trunk when you hug it. If it is any bigger than this any branches that fall off due to wind would be dangerous. We learned that to make the shelter warm and compact you should cover it with leaves, moss and grass and don’t make it too spacious. In the end both shelters were very successful and would have kept us protected from the elements.

By the time we got back Sarah had already prepared a yummy lunch of beef fajitas and they were delicious! After that we explored our teepee tents and we prepared for the night by laying out our sleeping bags. When everyone was out of their tents we went for a nature walk where we saw amazing trees and the oldest tree in the forest which was massive.

By Eleanor, Alice, Marissa and Leela

On our residential trip to Bushcraft we faced many challenges, none of which were easy! Day one involved building shelters and an interesting nature walk and on our second day, after being woken with a delicious English breakfast, we went down to the freezing lake. Many of us were brave and we plunged in with the support and cheers of our friends.

After the long trek back to camp, we sat in the yurt and talked about the different ways in which you can build and start a fire. We then split up into our tribes and took it in turns to try and light the fire we had built. Once that was done we cooked our kebabs over the hot fires. That evening we had a choice of where to sleep, either in a tent or outside in the shelter.

By Elliot and Jack

During Bushcraft, we worked collaboratively in a team and we got to know the Form 6’s better and made closer friendships. Our favourite activity was the Bushcraft Challenge because we had to remember all of the skills we learnt throughout the trip and show we had been listening carefully. We had an amazing adventure!

By Oliver, Roman and Bruno

Form 3 walk like Egyptians!

Date: June 2015 | Category: History

On May 21st May, the children in Form 3 swapped their usual Norfolk House uniform for white tunics, golden jewellery and headdresses to celebrate Egyptian day.

In the morning the children investigated Egyptian Gods. We learned that the Gods had the head of an animal and the body of a human. The animal head was symbolic of what the God stood for. We then brainstormed what Gods we could have and created our own Gods!

We then learned all about the mummification process . Did you know that the mummification process involved taking the organs from the body and preserving them in jars? The children created their own vase wax drawings that were washed over with water colours to build in a background.

In the afternoon, the children thoroughly enjoyed creating their own sugar pyramids with Mrs Duffy. The day was thoroughly enjoyed by children and adults alike.

Miss Howson

Pre-Prep Fairy Tale Day

Date: June 2015 | Category: English

On Thursday 21st May, Pre-Prep was taken over by a range of fairy tale characters. Mrs Gormley and Mrs Bolton were replaced by Fiona and Snow White and the children turned into a range of different characters.

They had a wonderful day making crowns and hats. The fairy tale folk wrote some lovely collaborative stories and in the afternoon, we danced and had a party.

It was a lovely end to our Fairy Tale topic and the children had lots of fun. Please take a look at our Photo Story for more pictures.

Sports Day

Date: June 2015 | Category: Sports

On Friday the 12th of June, excitement filled the air at Queenwood School as Reception to Form 6 took part in the annual Norfolk House Sports day. It was a fun filled day with adults and children taking part in numerous races and showing a great deal of sportsmanship in supporting their friends. What a fantastic atmosphere it was!

The day kicked off with the 400m long distance race. The children showed great resilience and determination to cross the finish line and were cheered on by all the adults and children. The egg and spoon (or potato and spoon) got off to a slow but steady start. The children were careful to keep their potato on their spoon and stay inside their lanes.

Meanwhile Mr Smith, was quick to personally set a Norfolk House record for the furthest long jump with 4.1metres. Eloise in Form 6 challenged Mr Smith’s record with a jump of 3.55 metres. Mrs Cannon, who was overseeing throwing, witnessed some great throwing techniques all of the children.

The parents were delighted to take part in the Space Hopper Race, the three legged race and the most memorable event of the day- the tug of war! Never have I seen such determination between adults to win a race. Despite some injuries, the parents were determined to be the first to cross the finish line and did so with a smile on their faces.

As sports day drew to an end, it was time to announce the winner. It was a narrow result with Wellington taking 1st place by only 1 point. Well done to the children and adults who made the day a great success and thank you to all our families for joining us on such a lovely day!

Miss Howson

KS2 Production - The Jungle Book

Date: July 2015 | Category: Performing Arts

For the last half term, Key Stage 2 have been busily preparing for our end of year production of The Jungle Book. The rehearsals have been enjoyable, exciting and sometimes a little challenging too! The children and teachers have collaborated well together to work on our acting and singing skills and we have all tried to play our part.

It is not just the Form 6 children with roles in the play as Form 3 are the elephants, Form 4 are the monkeys and we in Form 5 play the various parts of the jungle itself! Our teachers have taken the time to teach us the choreography for our dances and practise our scenes with us so we can work on our reactions to what is happening on the stage.

Tuesday, we had a very hot but successful dress rehearsal and it was great to see everyone in their fabulous costumes. The bright colours of the clothes and the prospect of having KS1 watching us added to the excitement and we were also really impressed with the amazing tropical backdrop that even included a beautiful waterfall and blooming flowers! Mrs Pakkos and Miss Ficken had done a fantastic job with the set and it really set the scene for the story. Our favourite costumes were Maria’s stunning blue feathered bird of paradise outfit and the inventive rock costume that Roman had constructed. The furry monkeys also looked brilliant and Form 3 had even collaged their own elephant masks which were really effective.

We are really looking forward to the real performance as our friends and family will get to see us and we can show them how hard we have been working. We also want to say a big thank you to Mrs Holt and Mrs Cannon for organising and directing the play as they have worked tirelessly and it wouldn’t have been possible without them.

By Olivia, Eleanor and Oliver (Form 5)

Haileybury Year 5 Science Challenge

Date: July 2015 | Category: Science

On Tuesday 23rd June we attended the annual Haileybury Year 5 Science Challenge at Haileybury School. Representing Norfolk House were Anna Herbert, Pip Jordan, Marissa Forbes and Elliot Forrest. The theme of the day was the exploration of Mars on which the three challenges (Chemistry, Physics and Biology) were based. Students were assessed on their ability to problem solve, work as a team and meet specific criteria for each challenge. Throughout the day Anna, Pip, Marissa and Elliot exemplified the ethos of Norfolk House by working together, being polite and courteous and enjoying themselves.

For the Chemistry challenge the children had to produce exactly 30 ml of oxygen in 30 seconds by choosing a catalyst to react with hydrogen peroxide and controlling the rate of the reaction by changing the variables; the focus being producing oxygen for people to breathe if they landed on Mars. Even though the children had never experienced working with any of the equipment or chemicals, they did an amazing job producing 25 ml of oxygen in 30 seconds - pretty impressive! We then enjoyed the fantastic lunch provided in the impressive dining hall. Much of the talk on the way to Haileybury had been centered around how great the food was and it certainly lived up to the reputation.

After lunch we began the Physics challenge and the children had to design and build a system to land sensitive scientific equipment on Mars from limited materials. The children had to protect a raw egg (representing the equipment) when thrown off the top of the Science building! Unfortunately, ours didn't make it down in one piece, but we still had fun building it. Finally for the Biology challenge we had to filter water from Mars by building our own water filter from the materials provided. Our water filter did make the muddy water a little clearer, but we decided to stick to the water fountains when we were thirsty.

The day drew to a close with an exciting yet educational Chemistry Show from the staff at Haileybury and presentations. There were more that 30 schools taking part and even though we did not win the overall event, we performed to a very high standard in the Chemistry challenge (the best in our group by far) and had an immensely enjoyable day. Anna, Pip, Marissa and Elliot should be proud of the way they represented our school and it was a real pleasure to accompany them. Well done to all.